Hearing on Nasheed’s family visits delayed

The civil court has delayed a hearing on visitation rights for jailed former President Mohamed Nasheed to 1:30pm on Thursday.

The Maldives Correctional Services (MCS) was unable to present the opposition leader for the 12:40pm hearing. A spokesman said the MCS received the court order this morning.

Nasheed is being held at the Maafushi Island jail, an hour away from the capital Malé.

Ahmed Nazim Sattar, the former president’s brother, is suing the MCS over what he claims is a sudden decision to limit Nasheed’s weekly family visits to his parents, wife and children.

A prisons spokesman previously said recently compiled regulations for the special protection units – where high-profile prisoners including the former president and two defence ministers are held – allow weekly family visits by immediate family members.

The Maldives Independent has learnt that while Nasheed’s visits are limited to his parents, wife and daughters, other prisoners in the special protection units are allowed visits from siblings.

Nasheed’s lawyers are also complaining over infrequent access. Ibrahim Riffath, a member of Nasheed’s legal team, said lawyers have not been provided access to the former president since October 1.

Nasheed is serving a 13-year jail sentence on a charge of ordering the arrest of a judge during his tenure. A UN human rights panel has ruled his imprisonment illegal and called for his release.

The government has said it does not accept the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention’s (WGAD) opinion and says the matter must be resolved through the domestic courts.

Writing by Zaheena Rasheed